Bad Advertising

I am generally opposed to traditional advertising for my clients unless they have very deep pockets. Advertising does not work very well. Marketing is a new game with a fairly level playing field. Marketing is for the smart. Money cannot buy results that ‘smart’ can generate.

And when advertising goes wrong, it really goes wrong.

This would almost work without “TO DIE FOR!” Almost.

This restaurant is in a city somewhere with lots of people with I-Phones, Twitter accounts, Facebook pages and YouTube access. All of those vehicles can be reached for free, for fun with great results if the business is smart.

This ad? The owner bought this billboard because she was told it would be seen by thousands of eyeballs. And over time, those thousands of eyeballs would see this ad many, many times which would reinforce the message.

Now, pick a number. 5? Okay, if just 5% of those eyeballs come to her restaurant, that’s potentially hundreds of new customers. Conservative? Okay, even 1% of thousands is a lot.

So she spent money for the design. She spent money to have this artwork produced. And then she entered a contract to keep this up for a month or two or three…the cost can run from $3,000 and up per month. Add $2,000 for the “art”.

That’s a lot of tacos. Now consider this…scroll down please.

Keep going.

Just a little more.

Good. Now, let’s see how well advertising works. What’s the name of the restaurant?